The travel images in our files were shot on location (is there
any other way?) over many years, though the ones you will see
here were taken more recently. Styles change (cars and clothing
most noticeably), new buildings are put up, new museums open,
public spaces are pedestrianized and older images eventually
become out-dated. More remote locations, as well as most scenic
areas, change much more slowly, so these images remain valid
longer. A new skyscraper in a city can date a recent picture;
the Grand Canyon does not change visibly in a lifetime. Film,
and now digital, technology, also changes, and images I once
thought wonderful I can now barely stand to see. It is not so
much that the colors have faded or changed (at least no more
than my memory of what I think they once looked like); rather
it is the ability of newer technologies, both hardware and software,
to capture more vibrant colors in a larger pallet that has made
them so much better. Each year we add between 10,000 and 20,000
images to our files, at the same time reediting, mothballing
or even throwing away older material.